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Inspiring Stories

We would like to share this inspiring tidbits of hope and heroism from the ground. By re-telling them, we celebrate the extraordinary in the many ordinary Filipinos and the shining spirit of our people in the face of adversity.

Juans Gather as One: Only in GK
by: Leiah Quimbo

There’s no movement like Gawad Kalinga.

It’s only in Gawad Kalinga that you find 200 people gathered in a place with no electricity and limited water supply, ready to help people they’ve never even met. It’s only in Gawad Kalinga that you find families, whose houses have been destroyed, welcome strangers to their community as if they’ve known each other for a long time. It’s only in Gawad Kalinga that you find people who have the courage to care for all the Filipinos, especially the poor.


The five days we spent in Isabela were not enough. We wish we could spend more time with the families in the GK communities. My groupmates and I had the privilege to visit different GK communities in Isabela during our medical relief mission with the awesomeness that is GKal. The villages we went to were a bit far from each other, but the atmosphere’s always the same: the welcoming and hospitable kapitbahayans, the friendly and cheerful kids and you can’t get rid of the feeling of never wanting to leave their community. It’s as if our hearts break every time we ride the truck and wave goodbye to the people in the site.

One of the volunteers with me mentioned that the trip we had in Isabela wasn’t just about repainting and reroofing the houses, it was about bringing hope back to the people and making them realize that they can get up right back up after the damage Typhoon Juan caused them. That was enough; we wanted the people in GK to know and feel that are here and that we will never leave them alone. Walang iwanan ♥

During the last day, I was so excited to come from our last village for GKal and be back in GK Arkon. I took some time to walk around and met a Tatay, he had a mini-tindahan inside his house so I bought snacks and had a little chat with him, I even took over and sold for his tindahan. Afterwards, I went back and drew face paint on the kids. Gosh, it was only that time that I remembered how much I love being with kids, how their sweet smiles can easily refuel your energy and you can play with them for hours.

Every time the Kapitbahayans thank me, I always insist that it is I who should be thanking them. I’ve learned so much from my five days in Isabela. The memories are enough to make me smile for months and I’ll never ever forget this experience and the people I met.


It’s only in GK that you meet people you feel like you’ve known your whole life. It’s only in GK where hours feel like minutes and days feel like hours. It’s only in GK that you meet crazy people who love the poor so much they’re willing to drop everything and help a kababayan in need.

Hi! My name is Leia Quimbo. I’m 19 years old and I’m crazy about Gawad Kalinga. I GK ♥

Rise Isabela!
by: Carmz Lopez

How do you heal a broken heart? How do heal broken hearts?

It’s never easy dealing with a broken heart and it’s definitely harder to heal broken hearts.

We arrived in Tumauini, Isabela after a 12-hour trip from Manila with great fervor and enthusiasm. It was a difficult sight to see. Huge trees were uprooted, houses were roofless, farms were destroyed, and roads were battered. All in all, the town was devastated. And personally I couldn’t help but wonder how we will be able to help the place. It seemed that “Juan” took away everything. Well, not quite.

GK Kalusugan (the health program of Gawad Kalinga) spent days going around different areas of Isabela for medical relief - from Ilagan to Tumauini, to San Mariano, to Benito Soliven, to Cabagan. We saw wounds caused by roofs and windows that fell, some kids had high fever, adults had hypertension and others were sneezing and coughing. We saw fear and pain in the eyes of the people. One Kapitbahayan member said that each time the wind blows hard – they start to tremble and feel so unsecured. People were physically sick – imagine sleeping with no roof and not eating well. Moreover, they were also emotionally down – due to the trauma from the super typhoon. They were broken hearted.


We brought nothing but our smiles to Isabela. There were students, young professionals, Kapitbahayan and SIGA members from Metro Manila GK villages. The whole GK Kal team came in full force to Isabela. We gave medicines and health advices during the medical relief. We treated wounds and talked to mothers. Maybe what we gave is nothing compared to what they need. But just as the people of Brgy. Arcon said, "Salamat sa pag-asang dala niyo." And this was enough for us. To know that "Juan" may have taken away their roofs and other possessions, but "Juan" didn’t take away their dreams and aspirations. Hope was alive.

How do you heal broken hearts? Gawad Kalinga. Care. Build relationships. Sacrifice. Smile. Share. Pray. Love. Through all that is, there is a Bright side. And for sure, because of our courage to care, Isabela will rise again.

Major major thank you to:

GK USA for the funds used to purchase medicines for the medical reliefs done.

Students from NCST, DLS Dasma, PNU, Assumption, UP, PSBA and Ateneo

Individual Volunteers who assisted GK Kal

Doctors from the Philippine Medical Association-Isabela Medical Society, the Municipal Health Office of Tumauini and the Philippine National Police

 



Laban Kay "Juan", Para Kay Juan
by a GK Volunteer

We were in full battle gear, ready for the difficult mission ahead, but what we were not ready for was the assault on our hearts and spirits. 
 
It was heart wrenching and inspiring, all at the same time.
 
 It felt like we were entering a war zone as we reached ground zero in Isabela.  As we reached the first town, we saw a Shell gas station structure almost completely dislodged from the ground!  It was scary to think that something that big could be dislodged by the strength of the winds and we were all bracing ourselves for what we would find on-site.
 
As expected, the devastation was widespread, especially in Ilagan and Tumauini, the two priority sites that we initially listed.  According to our GK hero, Tito Elmer Cadiz, these were the two badly hit areas.  We saw long stretches of the highway, several kilometers long that had leaf-less trees and not a single electric post standing straight. 
 
But more than the physical destruction, it was the difficult ordeal that the families had to go through as "Juan" raged through their homes, and the pain of losing everything that really pained all of us.  Going through one GK community after another, we talked to the families and each one of them had a different story to tell.  Just one massive supertyphoon, but so many painful stories of real lives, real families, real parents and real children all fighting to survive and having to wake up the next day with practically nothing and the realization that it is back to square one, all over again for most of them. 
 
 I was lucky to have my camera with me, and I took a video of a conversation that I had with a GK resident in our GK community in Tumauini, Isabela.  In this community of 100 homes, ALL the families lost the roofs of their homes.  But it really only becomes real to you when you see their face, their pain, but also their courage.  You can watch it via
 
 
 
But I cannot imagine what it must be like to feel so helpless as you see the wind tearing down the roof that you are praying will keep your family safe.  I can't imagine what it must be like to see your small children taking refuge under the kitchen sink, while you watch out for perfect timing when you can run to safer ground while you see debris and metal flying everywhere.  And it is heartbreaking for me to even think about what it must be like to see your children soaking wet and trembling in the cold with nothing dry to wear.  And to have to sleep that night not knowing what tomorrow will bring.
 
And if going through all that was difficult, it is clear to me that it is even harder when they woke up the next day.  Typhoon "Juan" may have left, but they must now pick up the pieces. 
 
I shudder to think what could have happened to them if we had not relocated them from the dangerous areas they were living in and built these sturdy homes for them.  Even the big structures in Tumauini lost their roofs due to the strong winds that "Juan" brought.  Now the challenge is for us to help them get back on their feet and put a roof over their head, in the literal sense of the word!
 
During the Expo, we launched Kalinga sa Bayan and we said that we would now share the GK way with everyone, and offer to help not just our GK communities but whole towns and cities.  And just a few days later, God shows us an opportunity to really put this into practice with Typhoon Juan!  This reminds me of that planning session in Clark way back in 2002 when we said we would build 1,000 homes that year.  It was an ambitious number for the small, rag tag team that only had less than 30 communities, but we ended up building close to 2,000 homes that year!  As we cross the threshold of our first seven years and step forward in faith to the next 7, I can see God's hand moving mightily once again and He is once again showing us the way.
 
With the help of Tito Elmer Cadiz and in coordination with Mayor Arnold of Tumauini, we have launched KALINGA SA BAYAN : LABAN KAY "JUAN," PARA KAY JUAN. This is Gawad Kalinga's campaign to to help the families severely affected by Typhoon Juan.

 




We started by distributing in the GK communities that we have established throughout Isabela, and our teams used that as a base to assess the nearby barangays where we could also distribute the much needed relief goods.  The latest update of what we've been able to distribute and where is available online via www.gk1world.com
 
And because of the generosity of our partners and friends who simply refuse to leave our countrymen behind, we have a wonderful opportunity to really help these families get back on their feet by helping provide roofs for the families that were affected by the storm. 
 
Even while we were there, many of them were beginning to pick up the pieces.  Some, like this boy Jordan, was so inspiring and his actions brought tears to my eyes.  He was barely eight years old, almost the same age as my young son, and I saw him fixing their family's roof.  I asked him, "Bakit ikaw ang nag-aayos ng bubong ninyo?" (Why are you the one fixing your roof?).  He pointed to his dad and said, "Kasi po naaksidente yung tatay ko nung bagyo. May malaking sugat po yung paa nya, kaya ako na muna ang gagawa nito." (My father hurt his foot during the storm, so I offered to do this myself." 

 


Some families were already picking up the damaged GI sheets and were putting that and other scraps to create makeshift roofs.  Others who were not able to collect enough scraps simply built temporary shelters beside their home just so they could have a roof over their heads.  It is good to see them taking control of their lives and not losing hope despite the overwhelming challenge they just faced.
 
But given their limited resources, this is the best that they can do by themselves.  And that's why the call of Gawad Kalinga is for us to be our brothers keepers - let's not leave them behind!  Our volunteers are already getting ready and mobilizing for a build next week.  With the help of everyone, we can make sure that these families have roofs over their heads, built sturdier so that it withstands bigger storms and we'll also be teaching families how to secure it better. 
 
The dream that we have is to be able to install roofs for all the 160 families in Tumauini and Ilagan.  I have no doubt that God will not fail those families and He will use us mightily to make their dreams come true.

 


This was our last moment with the Kapitbahayan residents of GK Tumauini, and you would never be able to tell that these are the victims of typhoon Juan. 
 
Yes, those are bright smiles.  And it is pure grace.
 
Our presence brings them hope.  And although we cannot promise them material blessings (although they are sure to come), it is the fact that we are there for them and that we will simply never give up and leave them behind is the reason behind those bright smiles despite what they went through. 
 
In the end, it is the relationship that we have built through these years that matters.  And it is precisely because of this genuine friendship that we continue to do what we do.  Because no storm can be stronger than the bond that we have built.  No adversity can overcome the greatness and nobility of the Filipino spirit.  And although there is much that we will still go through together, nothing can break our faith in our great God who continues to provide and care for His people through the hands and hearts of so many people who genuinely care for the poor.
 
It is these hands and hearts that make the work of GK truly heroic, truly noble, and truly God's work.  I was not able to take their picture, but en route to Isabela, we passed by Nueva Vizcaya and found out that several Kapitbahayan members (GK residents) from Dupax del Norte were there since 7 AM and wanted to come with us to find out how they could help.  They had food packs with them and were mission ready, just like us - eager to help their fellow Kapitbahayan because they had been spared from the storm. 
 
"By their fruits, you shall know them," says the Bible.  And although the world may look at our homes or programs that truly make a difference in the lives of our poor countrymen, it is when they rise up and realize that they have been blessed and can be a blessing to others that is the true measure of our success. And I thank the Lord for showing us the beautiful fruits of His work done through the countless GK heroes throughout the world.  It is always a privilege to work in the Lord's vineyard with all of you.
 
Let's always be our brothers keepers.  Walang Iwanan!